A  Tlan 

to  Turn  a  Nation's  Offering  to 
their  Wounded  Heroes  into 
Permanent  Blessings 
to  Our  Country 


A  Contribution  Offered  at  the  Meeting  of 
Southern  Medical  Association 


MEMPHIS,  TENNESSEE 
November  12-13-14,  1917 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2014 


https://archive.org/details/plantoturnnationOOcohn 


A  Plan 


Turn  a  Nation's  Offering  to  their 
Wounded  Heroes  into  Permanent 
Blessings  to  Our  Country 

EVOLVED  BY: 

Robert  Cohn,  Honorary  Chairman, 
Memphis  Chapter 
AMERICAN  RED  CROSS  SOCIETY 

WITH  ASSISTANCE  OF 

Dr.  Marcus  Haase,  Chief  of  Staff 
General  Hospital 
MEMPHIS,  TENNESSEE 

Jones  &  Furbringer,  Architects 

MEMPHIS,  TENNESSEE 


SUBMITTED  TO  THE  ASSOCIATION  BY 

DR.  WILLIAM  KRAUSS 

MEMPHIS,  TENN. 


C.  TOOF  *  CO.,  MEMPHIJ 


THE  American  people  have  given  lavishly  to 
the  War  Fund  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  and  Ameri- 
can Red  Cross  Society,  for  service  and  use  in 
foreign  countries  for  the  benefit  of  our  young  man- 
hood and  for  solace  and  comfort,  help  and  assist- 
ance to  our  heroes  on  European  battlefields. 

In  a  spirit  of  unselfishness  and  self-sacrifice  we 
are  taking  upon  our  shoulders  the  fulfillment  of  a 
task,  the  like  of  which  the  world  has  never  seen. 

We  are  practically  taking  over  the  Red  Cross 
Service  in  France,  building  hospitals  and  recreation 
grounds  over  there  which  will  remain  as  lasting 
monuments  long  after  the  war  has  been  brought  to 
a  successful  conclusion,  as  a  token  of  friendship  to 
our  Sister  Republic  "France,"  a  monument  to  true 
Democracy.  We  are  doing  all  this  in  a  spirit  of 
giving  by  voluntary  contributions. 

Right  that  is!  As  long  as  we  have  decided  to 
make  the  world  free  for  Democracy,  it  is  also  our 
duty  to  see  to  it  that  our  children  and  children's 
children  are  not  burdened  unnecessarily  with  bonds 
and  taxes,  which  might  mean  slavery  and  not  a  free 
democratic  country. 

It  occurred  to  me  that  something  might  be  found 
to  turn  some  of  the  calamities  and  terrors  of  war 
from  a  blessing  of  immediate  necessity  to  an  ulti- 
mate lasting  benefit  for  our  country. 

Thousands  and  thousands  of  our  wounded  heroes 
will  have  to  be  returned  to  our  shores  after  they  are 
partly  restored  to  health  on  foreign  soil,  and  as  soon 
as  they  are  transportable.  Homesickness  and  lone- 
liness retards  recuperation  and  healing  more  than 
anything  else.  Nothing  helps  more  for  quicker 
restoration  of  health  than  our  home  country,  the 
very  air  we  used  to  breathe  in  conjunction  with  the 

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tender  help,  care  and  watchfulness  of  Mother,  Sis- 
ter, Sweetheart,  Father,  Brother,  Friends  and  Rela- 
tives. 

Under  present  conditions  are  we  able  and  in  a 
position  to  take  care  of  these  exigencies?  Have  we 
hospital  room  and  beds  enough  in  America  to  take 
care  of  our  wounded  and  sick  boys  returning  from 
the  battlefields  of  Europe?  We  have  hardly  hospital 
accommodations  enough  to  take  care  of  our  every- 
day needs,  not  to  speak  of  War  Requirements.  We 
might  meet  and  overcome  these  difficulties  by  build- 
ing hospital  barracks  here  and  there.  This  make- 
shift should  by  all  means  be  avoided,  and  can  be 
avoided  if  my  plan,  as  outlined  below,  is  accepted 
and  made  a  reality. 

As  a  blessing  for  the  present  and  for  posterity,  I 
beg  to  propose  the  erecting  of  Permanent  Hospitals 
all  over  the  country  with  a  capacity  of  at  least  two 
hundred  and  fifty  (250)  beds  each.  The  Building 
Fund  is  to  be  raised  by  voluntary  contribution 
through  the  War  Council  of  the  American  Red  Cross 
Society.  These  Hospitals  are  to  be  known  as  Red 
Cross  Hospitals  and  to  be  conducted  now  and  here- 
after under  the  supervision  of  the  Red  Cross  Society 
in  Washington,  in  this  war  and  all  wars  hereafter 
as  well  as  during  peace  time. 

These  Hospitals  to  serve  at  the  same  time  as 
schools  for  male  and  female  nurses. 

It  might  even  be  advisable  to  form  Special  Red 
Cross  Nurses  Societies  under  Headquarters  Control, 
to  serve  as  training  grounds  for  efficiency  and  as  a 
parallel  to  Officers  Training  Camps. 

From  one  to  five  of  these  Hospitals  should  be 
built  in  every  State  of  the  Union,  in  accordance  with 
the  population  of  each  State,  its  quota  of  men  fur- 
nished to  the  Army  and  Navy  and  other  branches. 

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A  further  consideration  should  be  the  amount  of 
money  subscribed  by  the  Individual  States. 

There  is  no  doubt  in  my  mind  that  the  raising  of 
the  money  will  be  an  easy  matter.  A  people  which 
subscribes  over  a  hundred  million  dollars  for  Red 
Cross  Service  in  France,  will  only  be  too  glad  to 
give  four  times  that  much  for  Red  Cross  Service 
within  their  own  borders;  especially  when  it  means 
something  of  permanent  benefit  and  lasting  value. 

Hospitals  will  have  to  be  erected  anyhow.  Why 
not  go  ahead  in  a  thorough  way  and  build  them  for 
eternity?  This  plan  will  appeal  to  a  great  many 
and  find  liberal  responses  from  people  whose  pock- 
etbooks  so  far  have  had  a  narrow  opening. 

Enough  bonds  will  have  to  be  issued  to  cover 
most  of  this  war's  expenditures.  Why  not  go  ahead 
and  pay  cash  through  donations  for  these  hospitals 
and  present  them  to  our  children  as  the  truest  token 
of  our  affection? 

The  matter  of  Building  Fund  properly  settled  and 
provided  for,  I  beg  to  suggest  that  the  Hospital 
grounds  have  at  least  ten  acres  and  more  if  possi- 
ble, and  should  be  donated  by  the  larger  cities  who 
desire  to  harbor  one  of  these  Red  Cross  Hospitals. 
The  donation  of  these  sites  should  be  insisted  upon 
not  only  to  stimulate  the  interest  in  the  campaign 
in  a  general  way,  but  to  keep  alive  and  create  addi- 
tional interest  and  "ardour  to  help"  in  the  smaller 
and  rural  communities,  who,  of  course,  can  be  bene- 
fited by  these  hospitals  only  in  an  indirect  way. 

It  would  perhaps  be  advisable  in  consideration  of 
future  developments  of  cities  and  after  war  require- 
ments, to  have  locations  selected  at  the  outskirts  of 
the  cities  with  easy  access  to  railroads  with  spur 
tracks. 

In  order  to  obtain  the  best  results  for  these  pro- 

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posed  hospitals  on  the  economic  side,  a  uniformity 
of  buildings  should  be  agreed  upon,  suitable  for  all 
climates  of  our  country,  to  get  the  best  results  at 
the  lowest  cost. 

It  is  my  privilege  to  attach  a  preliminary  plan  of 
a  hospital,  such  as  I  consider  feasible  and  advisable 
to  build  and  estimate  of  cost  excluding  real  estate. 
Labor  and  material  might  differ  somewhat  in  the 
various  parts  of  the  country.  The  estimate  attached, 
however,  might  be  considered  a  fair  average.  My 
idea  is  that  on  an  average  of  three  (3)  hospitals  per 
State  will  be  required,  which  of  course  does  not 
preclude  New  York,  Massachusetts  or  Pennsylvania 
from  building  more,  and  New  Mexico,  Arizona  and 
other  States  with  a  small  population  from  building 
only  one. 

On  this  basis  we  will  have  to  build  one  hundred 
and  forty-four  (144)  hospitals  at  a  cost  of  about 
$350,000  each,  or  a  total  of  about  $50,000,000  as  a 
Building  Fund. 

If  my  plan  or  any  similar  one  be  accepted,  we  can 
provide  facilities  for  about  50,000  beds,  which  we 
can  equip  easily  with  all  modern  requirements  for 
an  additional  sum  of  about  $50,000,000,  or  a  grand 
total  of  $100,000,000. 

For  maintenance  of  these  hospitals  a  sum  of  $27,- 
500,000  per  annum  will  be  required,  provided  all 
beds  are  occupied.  During  war  time  these  expenses 
will  of  course  have  to  be  borne  by  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment through  the  Military  Department  in  con- 
junction with  the  Red  Cross  Society. 

It  has  been  my  intention  to  call  for  the  creation 
of  a  Fund  known  as  The  Red  Cross  Hospital  Home 
Endowment  Fund  of  seven  hundred  million  dollars, 
which,  at  4%,  would  yield  the  necessary  means. 
Considering  the  changed  conditions  for  after-war 

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requirements,  sucli  a  plan  has  to  be  relegated  to 
the  scrap  heap;  the  more  so,  as  the  required  amount 
is  too  large  to  be  considered.  Besides,  these  hospi- 
tals can  easily  be  made  halfway  or  wholly  self-sup- 
porting. All  deficits  to  be  borne,  50%  by  the  Red 
Cross  Society  or  the  Federal  Government;  2.V,  by 
the  State  and  25%  by  the  City  in  which  it  is  located. 
Details  to  be  worked  out  at  the  proper  time. 

To  bring  this  plan  to  a  successful  and  quick  con- 
clusion, a  special  Committee  as  part  of  the  Red 
Cross  War  Council  should  be  appointed. 

The  Hundred  Million  Dollar  Red  Cross  War  Fund 
has  been  a  tremendous  success.  A  Hundred  Mil- 
lion Dollar  Red  Cross  Hospital  Fund  should  be  a 
greater  one. 

Any  oversubscriptions  might  be  applied  to  the 
equipments  of  Hospital  trains. 

In  conclusion,  don't  let  us  forget  that  the  treating 
of  our  wounded  soldiers  at  home  means  a  great  sav- 
ing in  other  directions.  Besides  it  enables  us  to 
keep  hundreds  of  physicians  and  nurses  at  home, 
thus  multiplying  their  usefulness  beyond  descrip- 
tion. 

It  is  our  duty  to  prosecute  this  war  with  all  our 
might,  but  part  of  our  duty  is,  at  the  same  time,  to 
conserve  the  man-power,  the  resources  of  our  coun- 
try for  our  home-land. 

This  plan  is  intended  to  form  a  small  part  of  these 
duties  which  I  hope  will  prove  acceptable. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

R.  COHN. 

It  matters  not  whether  the  buildings  arc  erected 
as  per  attached  draft,  but  it  matters  much  that  these 
Hospitals  are  built  quickly. 

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